The Windham County reformer. (Battleboro, Vt.) 1876-1897, 1887-04-08
THE FIRST EASTER.

That a strange power was at work, eve
in the darkness OF Calvary, is shown by th
events which caused even q supeistitious fee
ing to seize on many Of the Jews. Th
Roman centurion himself had been strongl
impressed with tho strange man whose ma
jesty OF spirit was something more thai
philosophers had ever realized. And Their
was q reactionary sentiment among TIL
crowd, who returned homo whispering t
each other with feeling of self rcproach
Only the priests failed to interpret this voice
| less language. They were satisfied. But fo
them the future finished what the present hat
begun. Failure and defeat are written Oh
tho lives of those who mako themselves
| strongholds of opposition to work conse
| Grated to humanity Oh which alone is or cal
| be inscribed tho word victory. Judas hat
| died by his own hand; Herod's ambition was
| frustrated by exile; PLATE was disgraced and
banislicd; Caiphas was removed from the i'm
pcrial office of high priest, and Annas was
finally murdered by mob in Jerusalem.
And many of those who insulted and sought
to humiliate Jesus, even in his depth of Attic
ton, suffered themselves at the hands Of the
very power into which they had eagerly de-
livered him. Moreover, even the cross,
strange to relate, had been The ancient ard
sacred symbol of life throughout all nations.
There is an avensinS angel which follows
men in the results of their own evil deeds
The Sabbath of tho Passover, the great
festival, was at hand, and tho thoughts of
those at Jerusalem were speedily turned to
other themes, and The events connected
with their own lives. Before it dawncd
the body of Jesus, ascertainel to lie lifeless by
the Roman guard, was delivered by the con-
sent of Plate 10 Joseph of Arimathea This
man, who was not only wealthy, but mem
Der of the sanhedrim, had never given his
consent to the extreme measures of the coun-
Gil, and was influenced by the great band OF
guardian spirits which had surrounded Jesus
to devote tomb, hewn i'll the rock, to the
burial of the body. 1t was new, it had never
Leen sullied by the influence of corruption,
and it was necessary for the work to be out
wrought within its still and silent chamber.
Wrapped in a clean cloth, and surrounded
with fragrant spices, the body of the crucified
was speedily deposited within the rock
and the mouth was closed by Il well fitting
stone. Two women, who had shed many
bitter tears, found a momentary consolation
in witnessing that at all events the burial Of
the man they loved had received some honor.
The site of the true place of burial Is of
course, entirely unknown, but over the sup
posed spot now rises the Church of the Holy
Ecpulchre. Some of the priests went to Plate
and had private interview with him.
"We request said they "that a guard
shall be sent down to this tomb until an inter-
val of three days has elapsed, for if you re-
member, that imposter said he should rise
again, and in order to prevent his followers
deceiving the people and stealing the body,
which would be more disastrous than ever,
we wish to have the place watched"
PLATE rejoined that they could do just as
they pleased; so, accompanied by some SOL
diers, these keen willed persons, ready for all
and competent to regulate the
universe itself, repaired to Joseph's garden,
sealed tho stone at the mouth of the tomb, !
and appointed a watch to remain by its side. |
We are well aware that the modern school |
Of critics has expended endless energy upon |
The slight apparent discrepancies which |
hey represent, completely invalidate the evil |
lence in behalf of what is popularity known
IS "the resurrection" We may boldly say,
that if the real conditions under which the |
ancient records were written were known,
hey would create astonishment at tho accu-
racy with which the main facts are told The I
of detail are precisely such as +
occur every day in the relation of any par
Licular fact Some viii omit this detail; 9TH
ers will add that. Al may be correct, end
The central reality stands out clear in the
midst.
And row we come to the contamination of
he mission of Christ. His birth was spirit
lal, and his organization revealed its higher
NV; all through his life he had been mani
'esting the gifts and powers of a spiritual type
o,,I linz oil ciI |
blows to materialism in every form; and in
lis death, so far as it could be death, was per-
nitted in order that it should illustrate, for
IL time, tho sublime fact that the spiritual
nan can escape the disintegration of the
,ody.
After such fearful ordeal as crucifxion,
ne spirit of Jesus had rccoiled from the earth
pherc, and passed into the world unseen of
Mortal eyes, but his body, wonderfully spirit
lalized, both in its original nature and by
waves Of triumphant suffering, had vital
,cincnts in every particle, and in the dark
les and still reposc OF the intended grave, it
ly, not as a corpse but as deposit of ply
ical clements sufficient to render the spirit of
ylrist visible ON his return. What was no
onger necessary to him was dissipatcd in the
ard the remainder absorbed in
ion of higher law Of Immortality; and it
ad never before been revealed to the world
1t was this idea of spiritual perfection which
,hrist sought in vain TO impress on his au
fences; it explains all his words; it dissolves
very mystery; it Eliminates his whole life.
The knowledge of life after death lad
cen understood on earth long before, and !
ccepted by its greatest thinkers. 1elnes
Plato, Socrates, Cicero, had all
aught it, and some of them knew il was q
act. 1t was believed in ancient Egypt in
'ersia, in India, among the old order Of the
,ruiis, and the Pharisees themselves.
The first thing the devoted women saw who
1ved Jesus with all the affection that woman
ood bestows on fine and strong manhood,
nd who believed in bin from first to lac, /
1as the vision of an angel. They had no need |
, roll away the stone to convey the spices
'ithin, for it was done. First one Of lbesc
eautiful spirits was seen; then two And .
icy were sign Of an easter then and one to !
)mc.
The one seen first spoke, and said, "Do not {
ar. You seek Jesus, the Nazarene, who has
zen cruciiied; he has risen; he is not here;
ok withnI' I
They knew the work, and they knew all its
'ents, and every stage of it. Well might O
,sus say he was surrounded by legion of
lgels Go-and tell the others that he is !
ling into Galilee, where he will be seen as !
foretold. Do you not remember that lie
oke to you of all these thingsp
Fear of this unusual sight fell upon all. v
ic power was SO great that the guard had a
lien down in a sort Of trance, and tho first 4
lpulse of the women was to fly from tho b
OF. Mary Magdalenc, however, remained, 7
ID WINS still in tcors bcc,pse she sa,v tha